Pg.57 'Mr Jerome looked frozen, pale, his throat moving as if he were unable to utter' the
verb 'unable' implies that Mr Jerome is paralysed just by talking about the woman in black
never mind seeing her. him being paralysed is the one of the permanent reactions he'll and
others will get just by the subject of her. this quote is actually a foreboding signal as later on
in the novel pg 105-106 the quote 'working, rubbing, fidgeting, gripping and ungripping' are
also the reactions people get from the women in black so the 'unable to utter' is symbolising
what will happen if you have met the woman in black. it also symbolisies the struggle to
warn Arthur about her not just because the woman in black is controlling him but als the fear
of bringing her up is relevant to this situation.
Pg. 38 'you're not going
to start telling me strange
tales of lonely houses?'
he gave me a straight
look.' No.' he said, at last
'I am not'
Chapter 5-6:
Pg. 74 'intended to switch on a good many
lights' this implies that Athur is wanting to gain
control. He wants to be in charge as being in
charge will calm him down and maybe make
him fearless.
Pg. 78 As soon as Arthur seen the
women in black he comments 'I did not
believe in ghosts' this supposes that he
now does believe in ghosts after Crythin
Gifford which means that meeting the
woman in black was the reason of him
changing his mind. Builds up a sense of
fear and dread-whatever caused him to
change his mind happened at Eel Marsh
House. (He's been lured in by the
supernatural whilst at Crythin Gifford)
whereas before that he didn't believe in
ghosts.
Chapter 1-2:
Pg.5 'Truth to tell, I was growing old well
before my time, a sombre,
pale-complexioned man with a strained
expression a dulldog' this shows the
hauntings have scarred him for life. the word
'pale' suggests that the experience has
drained all the liveliness he used to have.
aged by trauma experience.
Pg. 8 'i had remained silent as to my intentions for the future'
this implies that he hasnt told his family about the woman in
black or maybe the word 'remained' is the threat from the
woman in black. remain silence or i'll do the same agian.
Chapter 9-10:
Pg. 151 'the sound of moaning
down all the chimneys of the house
and whistling through every nook
and cranny' the words 'all' and
'every' suggest a trap there is no
way out as if it was moaning down
a chimney then he could find a way
to escape. The use of the verb
'whistling' suggests her attempt to
try and capture spider as spider will
reply to any call or sound.
Pg. 123 'I had slept lightly and restlessly, troubled by the snatches of peculiar, disconnected dreams. the
word 'snatches' could portray the woman in black. 'snatches' could be her nickname as she taken away other
peoples children and killed them due to the loss of her child. the use of the alliteration 'disconnected dreams'
is caused by snatches and you know at this moment onwards that Arthur is really fearful as his dreams are
meant to calm him down and give him some rest but the fact now that his dreams aredisconnected convey
that he has nothing to keep his sanity from going insanity.
Chapter 7-8
Pg. 105-106 'He shifted his chair
further away from me, as he sat behind
his rickety desk.' the use of the word
'away' conveys Mr Jerome is acting as
if Arthur has caught the contagious
disease from the women in black.
pg. 106 'I noticed his hands, which rested on the sides on
his chair were working, rubbing, fidgeting, gripping and
ungripping' the use of the verbs create a sense of fear as
'working, rubbing, fidgeting, gripping' have a rhythm which
represents everyone who has been affected by the woman in
black as the verbs are the symptoms of someone mentioning the
woman in black. But the verb 'ungripping' doesn't fit into the
pattern as which represents Arthur the verb is portraying Arthur
ungripping whatever he is holding to and going back to Eel
Marsh house.
Chapter 11-12:
Pg. 200 'They asked for my story i
have told it. Enough.' at the beginning
of the story Arthur tended to speak a
lot and now due to the short sentece
above that he isnt talking about it
anymore. The use of the imperitive
'enough' implies he is too scared to
talk about his experience.
Pg. 199 'There was a moment of dreadful
confusion' the fear in this quote is the fact
that Arthur is the only one that knows what
is going on but doesn't do anything as he is
just standing there scared. so the fear
comes from the fact that he has no one he
is by him self again just like in Eel Marsh
House.
Pg. 194 'Her bitterness was understandable' the
woman in black's behaviour has feared people to
believe that they understand and although that is
believable it could also mean that her scared
others into saying things they may or may not
mean due to the fearfulness of her presence.